Afghanistan scripted history by defeating Bangladesh to enter the semifinal of an ICC event for the first-ever time at this level.
Afghanistan scripted history by defeating Bangladesh to enter the semifinal of an ICC event for the first-ever time at this level. They beat Bangladesh by eight runs in a rain-curtailed game and will play against South Africa in the first semifinal.
Following the conclusion, Rashid Khan, the captain of Afghanistan, gave a heartwarming speech, going through his thought process during the match and emotions after the win. He said he was proud of his team and highlighted Brian Lara’s prediction, who was the only expert to give Afghanistan a chance to make it to the final four before the tournament.
Further, Rashid talked about the happiness of people back home who enjoyed the win and acknowledged their team’s efforts to overcome all the obstacles.
“It’s unbelievable. I don’t have any words to describe my feelings. Back home, everyone is so happy about this big achievement. It’s a massive celebration back home now. It’s a big achievement for us. We have done that in the Under-19 level, being in the semifinal. But, in this World Cup, I don’t have any words how to describe the feeling. The country will be very proud. I am so happy with the way we have delivered as a team.”
Pure pride! ❤️🙌🏻
Watch @rashidkhan_19 ‘s touching victory speech as Afghanistan secures its first-ever #T20WorldCup semi-final spot by defeating Bangladesh! 👊🏻
Watch him next when 🇦🇫 takes on unbeaten 🇿🇦 👉🏻 #SemiFinal1 | #SAvAFG | THU, JUN 27, 6 AM | #T20WorldCupOnStar pic.twitter.com/kKVD2kRM3A
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) June 25, 2024
Indeed, the story of Afghanistan and their cricket is heartwarming. Every team works hard, but the job was more arduous for Rashid Khan and his boys, given the conditions back home.
They hardly had any required facilities in their own country and had to travel to different countries for home games since no team dared to visit Afghanistan. There was pressure from the ICC and big boards cancelled playing against them for political reasons all these years.
Afghanistan have done it 🇦🇫🥹
They have qualified for the semi-final, Australia are knocked out. pic.twitter.com/Ue2oiY9yca
— CricXtasy (@CricXtasy) June 25, 2024
All Afghanistan players had was self-belief and the mental toughness to work hard and be satisfied with what was available. It’s not easy to excel with limited resources at the highest level, but Afghanistan are a miracle team, as visible from their progress.
It is not only a win for them; it’s a source of jubilance for the Afghanistan people and an act of courage from the team. The emotions might not have settled yet, and the celebrations will run for long, as they should.
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